cru Investment Management has won an international award for Africa Invest, a commercial agriculture project set up by cru in Malawi growing Bird’s Eye chillies, paprika and other herbs and spices for import into the UK and Europe.
EMRC, the European Market Research Centre based in Belgium, awarded the Cardiff-based business with the prestigious EMRC award at the African Agri Business Conference held at the UN FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation) headquarters in Rome.
The award acknowledges “the commitment to development and the successful strategies of investment in one of the poorest countries in Africa”.
The award was received by chairman Jon Maguire, who said: “To be recognised by an organisation such as the EMRC is a tremendous honour, and we are very proud to be the only recipients from the UK, let alone the investment industry, to have received such recognition. We are continuing to make massive headway into the agricultural industry in Malawi, taken together with our feeding and education programmes, and we are proving that with the right investment the alleviation of poverty can be achieved.”
Idit Millar, vice-president of the EMRC, described the Africa Invest model as “a magnificent initiative - investing in one of the poorest countries in the world in this way has not only proven to be a viable business model, but has also changed the lives of rural people in Malawi in such a way as to re-introduce a local and international economy, showing tremendous vision.”
Maguire attended the conference to present the Africa Invest model to ministers, NGOs, the private sector and other delegates involved with world food issues and agricultural development.
Further recognition was received at the conference from the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the UN, who are now in discussion with Africa Invest with regards to carrying out a case study with a view to the model being officially replicated by the UN.
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